You will understand the fear of God (Proverbs 2:1–9)

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Yomelijah

4 min readNov 26, 2022

The Christian who has reached spiritual maturity has wisdom, discernment, understanding, knowledge of God. This text explains the main reason that should encourage us to reach it: “you will understand the fear of Jehovah”. Indeed, the search for these very desirable spiritual qualities should have as goal, our exclusive relationship with Jehovah God.
Of course, the “fear” of Jehovah that is mentioned in this text has nothing to do with a morbid fear of God, the constant fear of divine punishment. Such fear is incompatible with love for God: “God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in union with God and God remains in union with him. In this way love has been made perfect in us, so that we may have freeness of speech in the day of judgment, because just as that one is, so are we ourselves in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts fear out, because fear restrains us. Indeed, the one who is fearful has not been made perfect in love. We love, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:16–19).
Therefore, how to love someone you fear at the same time? Take the examples of a mountaineer and a sailor. These two people are in close contact with nature, and know their laws. They take it into account. The mountaineer knows that when the storm forms suddenly, it is essential that he finds a shelter to avoid the risk of being struck by lightning. The fear he has of these atmospheric phenomena such as thunderstorms or thick fog that could make him lose his orientation, or the risk of avalanches, will probably lead him to cancel a hike he had planned. Likewise for the sailor, there are certain seasons when storms are more frequent and therefore, as much as possible, he will avoid being in a situation that could cause him to lose his life.
In these two cases, even if it is not a question of a relationship with a person, but of places or natural phenomena, we can speak of a “fear” of the mountaineer or the sailor, of finding themselves in situations that can cost them their lives: “The shrewd one that has seen the calamity has concealed himself; the inexperienced that have passed along have suffered the penalty” (Proverbs 27:12). As this proverb shows, this fear which results in prudence, is the result of a long experience because it is a question of a “shrewd” or experienced man. If you were to ask this highlander and this sailor to talk respectively
about the mountains and the sea, you will quickly understand that in general, they like these natural places, they feel a fascination, an attraction, and this, despite the salutary fear of dangerous climatic phenomena, specific to the mountains and the sea.
The wholesome fear of God can be said to be of the same or similar nature. We love God, but we know at the same time that we must not cross certain limits or do anything that could ultimately cost our lives. In Malachi there is a beautiful description of a peaceful relationship between God and a faithful servant, here is what we can read: “As for my covenant, it proved to be with him, [one] of life and of peace, and I kept giving them to him, with fear. And he continued fearing me; yes, because of my name he himself was struck with terror. The very law of truth proved to be in his mouth, and there was no unrighteousness to be found on his lips. In peace and in uprightness he walked with me, and many were those whom he turned back from error” (Malachi 2:5,6). It is written that this man is “struck with terror” because of the Name of Jehovah, he perceives his majesty and the wonderful power that it induces. Nevertheless, this “fear” does not prevent this man from being at peace with God and working with Him in harmony.
The Hebrew term “yirah”, translated as “fear” of Jehovah, in the text of the Proverbs may have the meaning of “reverence”, that is, reverential fear (Strong’s Concordance (H3374)). This means that the person who has reached Christian maturity will understand that his relationship with Jehovah is a great privilege that God gives us. Moreover, when we approach God by prayer, we can do so frankly, but also with a reverential fear that is due to the most important Person of all visible and invisible creation (Revelation 4:11).

The teaching of Jesus Christ that leads to spiritual maturity
The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 to 7)
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The prophecy of Daniel:
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Zechariah’s prophecy:
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To read the whole article “Good things to come”:

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To read the whole article of “Why did God allow suffering and wickedness?”, please choose your preferred language, below:

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